Escort 1.8 TD 1996. Dreadful noisy diesel, appalling torque steer and turbo lag, horrid cheap interior. Off boost it could barely move with five on board. A 1980's PSA diesel was light years ahead.
But it was reliable and cheap to run.
|
I was wondering when something powered by a Ford 1.8 TD engine would put in an appearance.
I have a Mondeo 1.8TD and it's been a really good car to me, but I completely understand why these engines offend people. Coarse doesn't even begin to cover it. But it is very reliable.
|
Kangoo.
Just ghastly.
|
Really glad you said that as was considering one when I bought the Xsara- till I saw one parked outside the office.
Another dire car for me was an 86 1.6L Sierra. Bit of a relief it was gutless as the steering seemed to operate in a different time zone to the steering wheel. Dad had one as a loan car when his company car was stolen and written off. Someone then kindly drove into the Sierra whilst I was driving it.
Perversely he also had a 1.8 Sierra as a loan car, and that felt much better for some reason.
|
Worst vehical was a J4 van. The steering was so heavy and it was so nose fronted that I used to put several bags of corn on the back axle.
My sheepdog liked to sit on the engine cover in the winter, nice and warm for him.
It was a terrible van, has anyone else on the backroom driven a J4?
|
Ford Zephyr Mk IV, circa 1972 -- a barge if there ever was one, its six-cylinder engine notwithstanding -- closely followed by a woefully underpowered 2 litre Ford Granada in the late 1970s.
And I musn't forget the VW 411LE Variant, which was fine as long as I put at least two large boxes of books in the front boot to keep it on the ground in motorway sidewinds and also if you didn't mind taking an awful long time to come to a halt.
|
Ford Zephyr Mk IV, circa 1972
The aircraft carrier bonnet one RJ? Horrible looking thing, swing axle rear end too I believe. But what was wrong with your 411's brakes? Mine used to stop all right.
|
Lud
My 411 was usually heavily laden. It certainly wasn't easy to stop.
|
|
|
|
"Worst vehicle was a J4 van"
That reminds me of a friend who had a very ancient and rusty one when he was restoring a house . We were loading bags of cement into it one day when it suddenly made a rather plaintive groaning noise and sagged in the middle until it was gounded. Did we laugh?
Must agree with comments on Micras. I hired one of the original shape ones in the mid '90s and it put me off Nissans forever.
Also remember the 1967ish Humber Sceptre ("sporty" Minx/Singer Vogue clone with twin headlights etc). A friend used to drive his Dad's with some enthusiasm and it seemed to go and handle quite well - by the standards of the time!
--
Phil
|
"2001 Kia Rio automatic, rented in Tobago. The car was clapped out and badly maintained, i.e no front brake pads to speak of. However, I think it was rubbish when it was new. Like the other two, it had rubbish steering, but at least it was light. The interior was obviously modelled on a 1978 Datsun minicab, and like all rubbish cars it seemed to drink petrol (less than 25 to the gallon) despite being incredibly slow. The auto box changed gear like a particularly incompetent learner, and always seemed to be shifting back and forth between two gears, both of which were wrong for the conditions."
Cross out 2001 and Tobago and replace with 2003 and Puerto Rico. However you forgot to mention the useless engine mapping with hopeless flat spots in unexpected places!
|
|
|
|
|
Yes, I remember the J4. My firm bought one after having Bedford CAs, which were OK. I borrowed the J4 a couple of times and I remember the gearchange - a lever poking out from behind the seats with about three feet of movement each time you tried to get up a bit of steam between lurching round corners. In due course they saw the Trannie light...
|
Worst (expected) - 70s Mini Clubman estate belonging to a friend; the brakes had scared me witless within a few hundred yards, so I never even got to try that legendary Mini handling - if indeed it applied to the estate.
Worst (unexpected) - '94 306 Diesel (non-turbo), poverty spec. Heavy clutch and steering, ponderous acceleration, unrefined, uncomfortable. So bad that when I hit a tree parking it, I felt barely a twinge of guilt.
And the mags of the time had led me to believe this was the car we should all be driving; that was when I lost all faith in road tests.
|
The worst cars I've driven were an Austin 16 fitted with a Borgward diesel engine and a 70s Chrysler Hillman Hunter.
The Austin was slow and ponderous as far as making progress, but really sprightly when "kangarooing" under (what passed for) acceleration. It could leap around quite spectacularly until a gear change (a carefully planned operation) quelled the kangaroo. The Girling rod operated brakes needed a request note to provide any retardation. The handbrake was quite good though, although a bit disconcerting when you saw the footbrake pedal flop to the floor when it was applied.
The Chrysler Hunter on its original equipment Dunlop C41 tyres (did either of these manufacturers have a conscience?) has been commented upon by others - a quite unbelievable lack of roadholding and handling - everything in this car was nasty.
659.
|
A choice for me! Either a 1987 Fiesta 1.6 diesel (you measured 0-60 with a sundial), or a late 80's VW caravelle (or LT, whatever the van version was) with the engine between seats IIRC, slow, noisy, uncomfortable etc.
Regarding the J4 comment, my father had a 1969/70 (H reg) model in purple, but from what I remember, it was spacious in the back (we had a sofa for us kids in there!) even if it never overtook anything!
|
|
I used to drive some delivery vans during the University holidays in the summer, (early to mid 1970?s). The were several vans available. Transit with V4, Transit with inline 4, Commer van, J4 JU250, J4 JU200 and Bedford CF.
The best was the inline 4 Transit which was very fast and had decent handling and brakes. The slowest was the J4 JU200, (1.6 litre?) and the J4 JU250, (1.8 litre?). The steering was heavy, they were very slow, incredibly noisy and the brakes were very bad. The JU250 did have a large cargo area. The Commer had poor handling but was quite good to drive and quite fast. The Bedford CF was a good vehicle but fuel economy was very poor.
It is easy to see how the Transit was the only one to survive through the 1980?s.
Q.
|
|
|
|
|
Kangoo, never, Ermintrude contract hire van on a 55 plate was a flyer, tyres a bit too narrow mind :-)
--
Drink Lager, Talk Piffle,
|
|
|
|
|
